Planer arrangement of carrier having plural pockets mounting cutter plates



Sept. 26, 1967 Q PLARER `ARRANGRMRNT oF CARRIER HAVING RLURAL RASSMANNET AL POCKETS MOUNTING CUTTER PLATES Original Filed April 15, v1964 um SUnited States Patent O 3,343,881 PLANER ARRANGEMENT OF CARRIER HAVINGPLURAL POCKETS MOUNTNG CUTTER PLATES Christoph Rassmann, Luuen, WernerGeorg, Altluueu, and Willy Heyer, llochum-Gerthe, Germany, assignors toGewerkschaft Eisenhtte, Westfalia, Lunen, Westphalia, Germany, acorporation of Germany Continuation of application Ser. No. 359,059,Apr. 13, 1964. This application Oct. 12, 1966, Ser. No. 587,638 Claimspriority, application Germany, Apr. 13, 1963, G 37,520 21 Claims. (Cl.299-34) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Mining planer arrangement including apair of spaced apart planer elements interconnected by an intermediatecutting tool carrier member having a plurality of pockets ofsubstantially the same dimensions for correspondingly receivingremovably therein the lower portions of cutting tools with thecorresponding upper portions of the cutting tools extending upwardlybeyond the carrier member and planer elements for extracting mineralfrom the mine face and/or mine roof, preferably with at least some ofthe pockets situated in tandem with the cutting tools being ofsubstantially different stepwise longitudinal dimensions such that theupper portions of such tools extend upwardly beyond the carrier memberand planer elements in offset stepwise relation to one another inaccordance with the differences in their stepwise longitudinaldimensions.

This is a streamlined continuation of copending U.S. application Ser.No. 359,059, tiled Apr. 13, 1964, now abandoned.

The present invention relates to a planer arrangement adapted to beconducted back and forth along a mine face for the extraction of mineraland the like, and more particularly to such an arrangement including apair of spaced apart planer elements linkably interconnected by anintermediate roof cutting tool carrier member having pocket means forreceiving one or more roof cutting tools.

It is known in the prior art to construct a mining planer such as a coalplaner with two separate planer elements which are articulatingly linkedto one another, with each planer element carrying the appropriatecutting tools thereon for winning or extracting coal or other mineral inthe particular direction of movement for which such tools areoperatively positioned. It has been proposed also to couple the twoplaner elements together by means of an intermediate member, such thatroof cutting tools are mounted on the intermediate member for extractingor tearing down the overhanging or roof coal or other mineral in themine face being worked. In this case, one or the other alternate groupof unidirected roof cutting tools mounted on the intermediate memberswings into the operating position, depending upon the direction ofmovement of the planer arrangement. As the coal or other mineral isundercut by the planer elements during the actual nonnal mine faceextracting operations, the roof cutting tools are also in operation.However, as will be appreciated by the artisan, it is not alwaysdesirable to cut simultaneously the top coal or roof coal, or othermineral, and the normal mine face coal, or side face coal.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the drawbacks offormer constructions including interconnected planer elements utilizingan intermediate member containing roof cutting tools, and to provideinstead a planer arrangement adapted to be conducted back and forthalong a mine face for the extraction of mineral and the like, in whichremovable roof cutting tools are provided, whereby to permit conversionfrom normal planer operations to roof cutting operations.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a planerarrangement of the foregoing type designed to permit the overhangingmineral or roof mineral to be undercut in sections and conveyed directlyon to a mining conveyor adjacent the site of operations with a minimumof loss of extracted mineral.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a miningarrangement of the foregoing type in which strata of mineral interruptedby unwanted gangue may be worked in a simple and etlicient manner so asto recover, for example, first the lower strata of desired mineral, thenthe gangue in the form of waste, and thereafter the remaining layer ofdesired mineral, such that the desired mineral and gangue are notintermixed during the extracting to the extent that losses of valuablematerial would occur.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a planerarrangement of the foregoing type utilizing slanted or inclined roofcutting tools on an intermediate carrier member, which tools arepositioned for slantingly undercutting the roof mineral in longitudinalblocks, in such a manner that the extracted blocks of mineral will slidealong the adjacent uncut portion downwardly and outwardly and execute atrajectory terminating at the mining conveyor in connection with whichthe arrangement is utilized.

Other and further objects of the present invention will become apparentfrom a study of the within specification and accompanying drawings inwhich:

FIG. l is a schematic side view of a planer arrangement in accordancewith the present invention;

FIG. 2 is schematic partial sectional view taken along the line 2 2 ofFIG. l and illustrating in phantom a portion of a mining conveyor, and

FIG. 3 is a view of a planer arrangement in accordance with theinvention similar to that shown in FIGS. l and 2 but containing roofcutting tools which slant downwardly and outwardly away from the mineface.

It has been found in accordance with the present invention that animproved, versatile planer arrangement adapted to be conducted back andforth along a mine face for the extraction of mineral and the like, maybe provided which comprises a pair of spaced apart planer elementslinkably interconnected by an intermediate roof cutting tool carriermember, the carrier member having means defining a pocket for receivingremovably therein the lower portion of at least one roof cutting tooladapted ,to extend upwardly beyond the carrier member and the planerelements for extracting mineral from the mine roof.

Preferably, the carrier member is provided with a plurality ofsub-pockets in tandem, and at least some of the sub-pockets are providedwith roof cutting tools, respectively, which are removably inserted attheir lower portions therein, such that their upper portions extendupwardly beyond the carrier member and planer elements for extractingmineral from the mine roof. Conveniently, the sub-pockets may be ofsubstantially the same dimensions while the roof cutting tools may be ofsubstantially different step-wise longitudinal dimensions, so that theroof cutting tools may be removably inserted in tandem in thesub-pockets with the upper portions of the roof cutting tools beingoffset step-wise from one another in accordance with the diiferences intheir step-wise longitudinal dimensions. The pockets in the carriermember may be divided into the sub-pockets by intermediate transversestop means against which the roof cutting tools are adapted to abut.Preferably, the root cutting tools are unidirectional and the stop meansare arranged symmetrically with respect to one another to permit theroof cutting tools to be inserted alternately removably in a selectivemanner for operative cutting engagement in each alternate direction ofmovement of the arrangement. Generally, the roof cutting tools will beprovided in at plate form with exchangeable carbide cutting bits.

Advantageously, the sub-pockets may be provided substantially in theform of transversely narrow longitudinal slots, while the roof cuttingtools may be provided in the form of plates of substantiallycorresponding dimensions, with the plates being removably inserted inthe slots and releasably xed in operating position therein by securingmeans. Among the securing means which may be used are transverselyextending pins interconnecting the roof cutting tools with the carriermember at the slots, as well as wedge means interposed between the plateform roof cutting tools and the appropriate sides of the slots infriction contact and pressure engagement therewith.

Specifically, the intermediate cutting tool carrier member includes apair of transversely spaced apart longitudinally extending laterallyside plates secured together along their longitudinal end portions toform the pocket. A pair of vertically spaced apart transverselyextending bolts are provided at each end of the carrier member so as tointerconnect articulatingly the respective planer element with thecorresponding adjacent end portions of the lateral side plates by meansof aligned bore means dened therein. With respect to each longitudinalend of the carrier member, the width of the adjacent bore means ineither the plate element on the one hand or the side plates on the otherhand, in connection with which the lowermost of the corresponding pairof vertically spaced apart bolts is used, is elongated in thelongitudinal direction of the arrangement to permit the lowermost boltto slide longitudinally for providing play between the correspondinglinkably interconnected plate element and carrier member. The sideplates may be laterally reinforced by superimposed longitudinallyextending rib means, and preferably the rib means disposed on thelateral side plate remote from the mine face side of the arrangementincludes a downwardly and laterally outwardly slanting guide surface toinsure that roof mineral which is extracted will be conducted in thedesired direction on to the mining conveyor in connection with which thearrangement is used.

In accordance with one particular embodiment of the present invention,the sub-pockets in the carrier member are positioned perpendicularlywith respect to the horizontal 'such that the roof cutting tools intheir operating position removably inserted therein, will extendvertically upwardly in a direction perpendicular to the mine floor. Onthe other hand, in accordance with another embodiment of the invention,the sub-pockets in the carrier member are positioned at an angle withrespect to the horizontal such that the roof cutting tools in theiroperating position removably inserted therein will extend slantinglyupwardly in a corresponding direction toward the mine face.

Referring to the drawing, and especially FIGS. 1 and 2, a planerarrangement is shown in which a pair of spaced apart planar elements 10,having appropriate cutting tools 11 thereon, are interconnected by meansof an intermediate roof cutting tool carrier member 12 having the upperears 13 and the lower ears 15. In this regard, the corresponding planerelements 10 are provided with appropriate ears 14 and 16, respectively,whereby an upper and a lower connection may be provided between eachlongitudinal end of the carrier member 12 and the appropriate planerelement 10. Actually, transverse bolts (not shown) are provided toconnect articulatingly the ears 13 and 14 at each longitudinal end ofthe carrier member, and in a similar manner bolts 17 are provided tointerconnect the corresponding ears 15 of the carrier member 12 with theears 16 of the appropriate planer element 10. The order to provideenhanced flexibility for the linkable connection between the parts intandem, the bore holes in the appropriate lower ears 15 of the carriermember 12 and/ or the bore holes in the ears 16 of the correspondingplaner elements 10 are elongated so as to form a longitudinal slot inthe longitudinal direction of the movement of the arrangement, wherebyto permit the three interconnected parts to articulate to some extentamong one another and thus accommodate any unevenness in the mine floor37.

Conveniently, the planer elements 10 are also interconnected by means ofa slitting plate 18 near the mine floor 37 which contains tools toundercut the mine face before the mineral is won or extracted by thecutting tools of the planer elements 10. As a consequence, the mine faceis relieved of pressure in the expected manner, as is known, and in turnthere is a facilitation of the actual winning or extraction operations.

Moreover, as may be seen from FIG. 2, a keel or underlying plate 19 isprovided on the rearward side of the particular planer element 1t),i.e., remote Ifrom the mine fac-e, and such plate 19 is meant to extendunder the mining conveyor 34, shown in phantom, in order to stabilizethe position and facilitate the movement of the planer arrangement alongthe mine face. rIhe use of underlying plates or keels and the use ofmining conveyors, such as double chain scraper conveyors, isconventional and appropriate constructions are disclosed in U.S. Patent2,745,65 l.

The carrier member 12 is provided with the lateral side plates 20 and 21(see FIG. 2) which are held in spaced parallel relation with respect toone another, by means of end spacers 22. Plate 20 is reinforced withribs 23 and 24 while plate 21 is provided with a guide rib 25 extendingdownwardly and outwardly toward the conveyor 34.

Carrier member 12 contains a pocket dened therein due to thecontiguration of the lateral side plates 20 and 21 spaced apart 4by thespacers 22. Appropriate transverse stop means 26 in the form of rods maybe provided between the plates 20 and 21 to achieve a plurality ofsubpockets for removably receiving the roof cutting tools 27, 2S and 29,which carry exchangeable cutting bits 30, which may be in the form ofcarbide steel bits. In order to xedly situate the various roof cuttingtools within the subpockets, pins 31 may be used to extend through theside plates 20 and 21 as well as through the appropriate roof cuttingtools 27, 28 or 29. Preferably, the pins 31 are xedly inserted throughthe plate form of the roof cutting tools 27, 28 and 29 in such a mannerthat appropriate receiving means within the pocket of carrier member 12will hold the appropriate roof cutting tool in t-he desired way untilthe same is removed.

As may be seen in FIG. l, the roof cutting tools in the form of similartrapezoids, Le., with the leading and trailing edges being more or lessparallel with respect to one another, and with the interconnecting topand bottom edges being at an angle with respect to one another, chipaway at the mineral to be extracted from the mine roof 33 up to a pointnear the gangue 36 thereabove. The mineral which is chipped away willconveniently fall against the guide rib 25 and pass into the miningconveyor 34. Any mineral falling directly in zfront of the roof cuttingtools and carrier member on the side adjacent the mine face being workedwill be eventually plowed into the conveyor during the next passage ofthe planer arrangement along the mine face, for example in the directionof arrow 32, or in the opposite direction as shown by arrow 35 (see FIG.l). The plowing of mineral extracted from a mine face into the miningconveyor adjacent the site of operations is a well known expedient andthis may be appreciated `from a consideration of the close proximity ofthe mining conveyor 34 to the mine face being worked as shown in FIG. 2.

With particular attention to FIG. 2, it will be seen that as the planerarrangement passes along the mine face in the direction of arrow 32, forexample, a groove 38 is made in the roof mineral portion so as to form alongitudinal block 39 which will eventually be loosened from the gangue36 and allowed to fall upon the conveyor 34 so that the same may beremoved from the site of mining operations.

The embodiment of FIG. 3 is similar to that of FIG. 2 but instead of theupwardly directed roof cutting tools 27, 28 and 29 being perpendicularto the mine iioor 37, roof cutting tools 27', 28' and 29', are slantedupwardly and inwardly toward the mine face and therefore at an anglewith respect to the mine floor 37, so as to cut away the roof coal in acorrespondingly slanted manner. In this way a slanted ledge 40 isdeiined in the face of the roof coal. Accordingly, as the block of roo-fcoal is cut apart from the remainder, such block 41 will break oif andslide along the ledge 40 in the desired direction, so that the same willfall directly into the conveyor 34 adjacent the side of the arran-gementcontaining the planer elements remote lfrom the mine face. Each planerelement i0 in this embodiment is similarly provided with a keel orunderlying plate 19'. As will be appreciated from FIG. 3 as Well as fromFIG. 2, the appropriate keel or underlying plate can overcome theresistance met at the mine face by the planer elements 10' due to theweight of the mining conveyor 34 exerted thereon as well as the weightof any mass being conveyed along the mining conveyor 34.

Accordingly, the present invention contemplates iirst extracting themine face in the normal manner using planer elements of the instanttype, without any roof cutting tools until the top mineral or roofmineral is left suspended without any support therebelow. When theoverhanging strip of roof mineral such as coal has achieved a breadthwhich extends approximately as far as the middle `of the mining conveyoron the offside of the planer arrangement, or when the same has achieveda breadth extending even somewhat farther, if desired, then the roofcutting tools of the instant type are inserted in the carrier member forthe purpose of slitting the overhanging mineral in an upwardly directedmanner, whereupon the entire block of roof mineral may then be caused todrop as a whole. By the particular arrangement employed, the loosenedblocks of roof mineral will automatically fall into the conveyor withoutloss of valuable mineral and without the need for extra measures torecover mineral which misses the conveyor. Not only Will the guide rib25 of FIG. 2 assist in guiding the loosened blocks of roof coal into theconveyor, ibut also the employment of roof cutting tools of the typedepicted in FIG. 3.

The arrangement of the present invention is particularly applicablewhere the mineral seam is divided into an upper seam and a lower seam bya more or less thick stratum of gangue. This often occurs in the miningof coal. In such case, the coal can be won or extracted by normal planeroperations only to a height Aas far as the gangue. At the point wherethe gangue overhangs far enough beyond the mine face therebelow beingworked, then it may be possibie to free the gangue from the mine faceformation by vertically slitting the same upwardly to cause blocksthereof to form and upon loosening to eventually fall. After the removalof the waste gangue, Iand after one or more additional operationsnecessary to achieve the removal of the gangue and the extraction of theundercoal, if necessary, to expose suicient upper coal in the upper seamfor removal, the upper coal may then be cut by the roof cutting toolsofthe invention to cause the loosening and falling of such upper seamcoal onto the conveyor in a similarly automatic manner. It will beappreciated that the cutting tools used for removing the gangue may bedifferent from those used for removing the coal thereabove in the uppercoal seam, and of course,

the tools for removing the coal in the upper coal seam will necessarilypossess a higher reach so as to cut a higher vertical distance into theformation.

Naturally, in order to be able to operate with versatility, the aftercutting tools or roof cutting tools usable in accordance with theinvention, are inserted in a manner permitting easy removal thereof,such roof cutting tools being appropriately received in the pocket orsub-pockets of the intermediate carrier member. Simply, the carriermember will possess a pocket or a series of sub-pockets open at the topinto which the roof cutting tools can be easily inserted, perhaps intandem in step-Wise relationship.- Of course, the sub-pockets may be ofequal size and shape so that roof cutting tools of dilerent size can beinserted into such pockets or sub-pockets for achieving a step-wiseoffsetting of the cutting edges of the tools. As aforesaid, it is ofespecial advantage to provide a single pocket in the carrier memberwhich is divided by cross bars or transverse stop means into a pluralityof subpockets for receiving the individual plate shaped roof cuttingtools. If the cross bars 26 as shown in FIG. 1 are in symmetricalrelationship to one another, then the cutting tools may be inserted soas to cut the overhanging roof coal in either direction, as desired,.and this feature may be appreciated from a study of FIG. l wherein anappropriate roof cutting tool 27 is shown in phantom but directed in theopposite direction when the arrangement is conducted in the direction ofarrow 35.

The roof cutting tools are conveniently of iiat plate design and thecutting bits may be in the form of replaceable carbide steel cuttingbits, secured in place with bolts or the like. In the same way, thecutting tools themselves may be removably positioned in the pocket orsub-pockets of the carrier member by means of pins as shown in FIG. 1,or by wedge means disposed in the space between the appropriate lateralside plate of the carrier member and the particular roof cutting platetool. While wedge means of the foregoing type will assure apressure-friction connection, the arrangement may be disassembled asdesired by merely tapping out the particular wedge means.

It will be realized that the intermediate carrier member may be arrangedsuch that the normally vertically upwardly directed roof cutting toolsmay be pivoted so .as to incline the same toward the mine face beingworked or the desired inclined tool disposition can be achieved byreplacing the carrier member and/ or the roof cutting tools by similarparts which, when assembled, will provide the roof cutting toolsinclined toward the mine face at least at their upper end portion.Numerous specific constructional arrangements to effect the desiredslanting arrangement will occur to the artisan and be obvious from theforegoing taken in connection with the embodiments actually shown in thedrawing.

While, of course, it is possible to utilize the planer arrangement ofthe invention with the roof cutting tools in place when merely onlycutting the coal from the mine face in the usual manner, a much greateramount of power will be required, since the roof cutting tools will besimultaneously in engagement with the roof coal as the normal planerelement cutting tools 11 would be in engagement with the mine face or.side face. Even if the roof cutting tools were rearranged in the pocketor subpocket means of the carrier member so that the same did not extendupwardly into engagement with the roof coal at the maximum height, moreoperating power than would be actually necessary would be used, all tothe inefliciency of the mining operation. It will be realized thatnormally urging cylinders or shifting cylinders, such as those of thetype shown in U.S. Patent 2,745,651 noted above, are employed to forcethe mining conveyor and in turn the planer arrangement against the coalface being worked. It is also possible to release temporarily suchurging cylinders during the back and forth travel of the planerarrangement when the top coal 0r roof coal lis being ex'- tracted by theaftercutting roof tools. Hence, the normal lateral cutting tools 11 ofthe planer elements 19 do not come into play and only the top coal willbe extracted during the back and forth movement of the arrangement. Thisprocedure is especially recommended when it is important to remove avein of gangue alone Without great losses of coal as might occur ifsimultaneously the side face were also being worked. In such event, theg-angue would be mixed with the side face coal and such side face coalwould either be lost with the gangue or eorts would have to be expendedto recover the usable coal from the gangue or waste.

In this regard, while the planer elements may be of the conventionaldesign, they will possess preferably an underlying plate extendingbeneath the conveyor over the full width thereof for greatest stability,with the two planer elements being interconnected near the mine tloor byan appropriate slitting plate carrying tools sufficient to undercut thecoal face before the coal is actually extracted -by the planing movementof the cutting tools of the planer elements. By undercutting the sidecoal face, the same is relieved of pressure at its underside, and ofcourse, the extraction and `break up of the side face coal is therebyenhanced.

Advantageously, by the use of a carrier member construction in which apocket or sub-pockets are provided and with the use of plates as roofcutting tools which are of the same breadth but of different lengths,the roof cutting tools may be inserted and removed for the desired typeof mining operation to be conducted, and the workmen employed for suchpurposes may be untrained, yet the changeover may be accomplishedquickly and perfectly. The cutting tool plates `are generallysymmetrical or similar in shape and may assume the form of a trapezoidalplate or even a triangular shaped plate, the same preferably carryingcarbide bits at both ends, so that upon reversing the direction ofextraction operations, the top or roof cutting tools may be merelyinverted in the sub-pockets and the extraction continued. Indeed, byproviding the plates used as the roof cutting tools in dilferent lengthsin sequence, the cutting edges will be offset from one another in astep-wise manner so that a more effective cutting operation may becarried out. While the instant construction permits interchangeable roofcutting tools to be used depending upon the height of the roof coal tobe extracted, it is not always necessary for the groove being cut in theroof coal by the roof cutting tools to extend upwardly to the gangueitself in order to achieve an automatic loosening and dropping of theoverhanging roof coal in the form of blocks or chunks into the conveyor.The weight of the blocks or chunks of coal robbed of lateral support asthe roof cutting tools `are operated, will soon fall in the desiredmanner.

The arrangement used in FIG. 3 is of especial importance where it isnecessary to prop up the mine roof due to the particular condition ofthe strata. In this connection, it may be necessary to utilizecantilevered beams extending forwardly a suitable distance as close aspossible to the mine face being worked. For this purpose, a slanting setof roof cutting tools may be employed so that the coal in the upperportion of the mine face may be removed to allow further cantileveredbeams to extend into the mine face before the lower seam or main seam ofcoal in the side face being Worked is attacked 4by the normal planerelements. The slanting nature of the cut made in the roof coal will notonly achieve the loosening of the roof coal in the desired manner, butalso the upper slanting ledge which remains will further guide theloosened coal into the mining conveyor while permitting at the same timeworking space to allow the extension of the mine roof support as close-as possible to the mine face as will be achieved with cantileveredbeams as aforesaid.

Depending upon the angle of the roof cutting tools and the height of theupper coal seam -being worked, the roof cutting tools may be replacedwith tools of longer dimen,

sions. As the artisan will appreciate, however, the roof cutting toolsof the present invention contemplate thick, thin, high, low, wide,narrow, etc. shapes depending upon the conditions of the mine seamvbeing worked.

While the foregoing specification and drawings are set `forth forpurposes of illustration, it will be appreciated by the artisan thatvarious modications and changes may be made wit-hout departing from thespirit and scope of the present invention, the same being limited onlyby the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed:

1. Planer arrangement `adapted to be conducted back Iand Aforth along amine face for the extraction of mineral and the like, which comprises apair of spaced apart planer elements linkably interconnected by anintermediate cutting tool carrier member, said carrier member having aplurality of pocket means of substantially the same dimensions forcorrespondingly receiving removably therein the lower portions ofcutting tools adapted to extend upwardly beyond said carrier member andsaid planer elements for extracting mineral from a mineral depositadjacent thereto and having the corresponding upper portions of saidcutting tools extending upwardly beyond said carrier member and saidplaner elements.

2. Arrangement according to claim 1 wherein said cutting tools areprovided in dat plate form with exchangeable cutting bits.

3. Arrangement according to claim 1 wherein said pockets aresubstantially in the form of transversely narrow longitudinal slots andsaid cutting tools are in the form of plates of substantiallycorresponding dimensions removably inserted in said slots and releasablyxed in operating position therein by securing means.

4. Arrangement laccording to claim 3 wherein said securing means aretransversely extending pins interconnecting said cutting tools with saidcarrier member.

5. Arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the pockets in said carriermember are positioned perpendicularly with respect to the horizontalsuch that the cutting tools in their operating position removablyinserted therein extend vertically upwardly in a direction perpendicularto the mine floor.

6. Arrangement according to claim 1 wherein the pockets in said carriermember are positioned at an angle with respect to the horizontal suchthat the cutting tools in their operating position removably insertedtherein extend slantingly upwardly in a direction toward the mine face.

7. Arrangement according to claim 1 wherein said cutting tools are flatplates having the shape of similar -trapezoids.

8. Planer arrangement adapted to be conducted back and forth along amine face for the extraction of mineral and the like, which comprises apair of spaced apart planer elements linkably interconnected by anintermediate roof cutting tool carrier member, said carrier memberhaving means defining a pocket divided into a plurality of sub-pocketsof substantially the same dimensions in tandem for correspondinglyreceiving removably therein the lower por-tions of roof cutting toolsadapted to extend upwardly beyond said carrier member and said planerelements for extracting mineral from the mine roof, at least some ofsaid sub-pockets being provided in tandem with such roof cutting tools,respectively, of substantially different step-wise longitudinaldimensions removably inserted at their lower portions in said subpocketsand having the corresponding upper portions of said cutting toolsextending upwardly beyond said carrier member and said planer elementsin offset step-wise relation to one another in accordance with thedifferences in their step-wise longitudinal dimensions whereby toextract mineral from the mine roof.

9, Arrangement according to claim 8 wherein the subpockets in saidcarrier member are positioned perpendicularly with respect to thehorizontal such that the roof cutting tools in their operating positionremovably inserted therein extend vertically upwardly in a directionperpendicular to the mine floor.

10. Arrangement according to claim 8 wherein the subpockets in saidcarrier member are positioned at an angle with respect to the horizontalsuch that the roof cutting tools in their operating position removablyinserted therein extend slantingly upwardly in a direction toward themine face.

11. Arrangement according to claim 3 wherein said roof cutting tools areflat plates having the shape of similar trapezoids.

12. Arrangement according to claim 8 wherein said pocket is divided intosaid sub-pockets by intermediate transverse stop means against whichsaid roof cutting tools are adapted to abut.

13, Arrangement according to claim 12 wherein said roof cutting toolsare unidirectional and said stop means are arranged symmetrically withrespect to one another to permit the roof cutting tools to bealternately removably inserted selectively for operative cuttingengagement in each alternate longitudinal direction of movement of thearrangement.

14. Arrangement according to claim 13 wherein said roof cutting toolsare provided in flat plate form with exchangeable cutting bits.

1S. Arrangement according to claim 13 wherein said subpockets aresubstantially in the form of transversely narrow longitudinal slots andsaid roof cutting tools are in the form of plates of substantiallycorresponding dimensions removably inserted in said slots and releasablyfixed in operating position therein by securing means.

16. Arrangement according to claim 15 wherein said securing means aretransversely extending pins interconnecting said roof cutting tools withsaid carrier member.

17. Arrangement according to claim 15 wherein said securing means arewedge means interposed between the plate form roof cutting tools and theappropriate sides of the slots in friction contact and pressureengagement therewith.

18. Arrangement according to claim 15 wherein said intermediate cuttingtool carrier member includes a pair of transversely spaced apartlongitudinally extending lateral side plates secured together alongtheir longitudinal end portions to form said pocket, and a pair ofvertically spaced apart transversely extending bolts are provided ateach longitudinal end of the carrier member which articulatinglyinterconnect the respective planer element with the correspondinglyadjacent end portions of the lateral side plates by means of alignedbore means defined there- 1n.

19. Arrangement according to claim 18l wherein with respect to eachlongitudinal end of the carrier member. the width of the adjacent boremeans in one of the corresponding plate element on the one hand and theside plates on the other hand, in connection with which the lowermost ofthe corresponding pair of vertically spaced apart bolts is used, iselongated in the longitudinal direction of the arrangement to permitsaid lowermost bolt to slide longitudinally for providing play betweenthe corresponding linkably interconnected plate element and carriermember.

20. Arrangement according to claim 19 wherein said side plates arelaterally reinforced by superimposed longitudinally extending rib means.

21. Arrangement according to claim 20 wherein the rib means disposed onthe lateral side plate remote from the mine face side includes adownwardly and laterally outwardly slanting guide surface.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,073,581 1/1963 Lobbe 299-34FOREIGN PATENTS 1,019,110 l/l953 France.

803,109 2/ 1951 Germany. 806,130 6/1951 Germany. 917,482 9/ 1954Germany. 706,026 3/ 1954 Great Britain.

ERNEST R. PURSER, Primary Examiner.

1. PLANER ARRANGEMENT ADAPTED TO BE CONDUCTED BACK AND FORTH ALONG AMINE FACE FOR THE EXTRACTION OF MINERAL AND THE LIKE, WHICH COMPRISES APAIR OF SPACED APART PLANER ELEMENTS LINKABLY INTERCONNECTED BY ANINTERMEDIATE CUTTING TOOL CARRIER MEMBER, SAID CARRIER MEMBER HAVING APLURALITY OF POCKET MEANS OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME DIMENSIONS FORCORRESPONDINGLY RECEIVING REMOVABLY THEREIN THE LOWER PORTIONS OFCUTTING TOOLS ADAPTED TO EXTEND UPWARDLY BEYOND SAID CARRIER MEMBER ANDSAID PLANER ELEMENTS FOR EXTRACTING MINERAL FROM A MINERAL DSPOSITADJACENT THERETO AND HAVING THE CORRESPONDING UPPER PORTIONS OF SAIDCUTTING TOOLS EXTENDING UPWARDLY BEYOND SAID CARRIER MEMBER AND SAIDPLANER ELEMENTS.